Air France-KLM pilots emissons-free airport vehicle

26 Mar 2009 by Mark Caswell

The Air France-KLM group is to pilot AirPod, a zero-emission airport vehicle, at Paris CDG and Amsterdam Schiphol airports.

Developed by Motor Development International (MDI), AirPod is powered by compressed air meaning it produces no emissions. The carriers will use seven of the vehicles over a six-month period from this May, to transport passengers and light cargo at the airports.

KLM says it is also introducing and researching other environmentally-friendly initiatives, including the use of aircraft stairs with solar panels, the development of alternative fuels, the use of lighter onboard trolleys (saving around 10kg per trolley), and research into energy recovery from company waste.